LGBT Culture in Westland
Westland has a long history and strong Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender culture, which while an established subculture, is also widely accepted in Westland's mainstream culture and media. LGBT culture in Westland is very open, with homosexuality legal since 1923, and Westland is ranked by various LGBTQ organisations to be the most tolerant nation in the world to LGBT issues. History Before the beginning of the 20th century, gay culture was almost non-existent in Westland. Homosexuality was criminalised, and was not visible in society. The Strassonist movement of the Socialist Party of Westland which became prevalent in the 1910's, included the opposition to homophiba and acception of all identities, including sexual orientations. This is largely thought to be due to Mikail Strasson's own suspected homosexuality and also through the party's ideology of social progressivism. With the establishment of the Westlandic People's Republic the constitution decriminalised homosexuality, and enforced punishments against homophobic individuals, protecting the newly visible homosexual community from discrminiation in society. Same-sex marriage was also legalised, as the constitution removed all religious meaning from civil marriages. During the 1930's, the homosexual community in Westland was the most liberated and visible in the world. Free from large-scale organised religious opposition and a changing social attitudes towards LGBT matters. Homosexuality became mainstream in society with the establishment of modern gay culture taking place during the 1950's and 60's in Brikkstö, and spreading across the country. However gay culture became even more establsihed influenced by global trends during the 1980's and was notable on the world stage by gay rights advocacy groups across the world as a model example of acceptance of LGBT acceptance in society. During this time prostitution became rampant, both in the homosexual and heterosexual communities due to lax government attitudes towards it, which led to the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. However there were crackdowns on prostitution in the latter part of the 1970's, leading to a safer LGBT community. Additionally, the 1980's brought free market reforms in Westland, which led to the privatisation of the Service Industry. This meant that many new gay-oriented establishments opened with more choice. These establishments collected together creating 'gay villages' in several towns and cities. During the 1990's Westlandic Lesbians complained about the lack of lesbian rolemodels and media personalities, with a homosexual-centric view on the LGBT community often portrayed in the media. Entertainment The 'gay scene' in Westland is well established in several cities and towns. The majority of larger urban centres have several privately-run gay-oriented establishments, including Clubs, Bars and Theatres. The number of these establishments and their prevalence has increased considerably since the 1970's with free market reforms in the Service sector of the Westlandic economy. Drag The art of Drag entertainment is has grown in popularity among the Westlandic gay community in the last two decades. This is influenced through Westlandic cultural values of free expression and the prevalence of fashion and style. Drag is most prominent among gay Westlandic males, who are known in Westlandic as ''"dragdams." ''There are numerous establishments such as LGBT-oriented theatres, clubs and bars which regularly host drag acts, and the phenomenon has spread towards the mainstream media with notable drag queens musicians and entertainers. Alternatively, there is also a movement of females dressing in male clothing who are referred to as ''"dragkings" ''(Drag kings). There are several notable drag queens in the media, including television host and recording artist, Beau Blumas. Events Media Westland's longest running LGBT oriented is Os Magazin ('out magazine') which has been published since 1984. Westland's public broadcaster Fölksnetzvörk has broadcast various LGBT related programming. Radio 1, also has what is called a 'gay wednesday' which broadcasts LGBT oriented programmings on Wednesday evenings. Westland has several LGBT television and media personalities, including Bruno Mölla and Beau Blumas. However there has been criticism from Westlandic lesbians over the portrayal of few lesbian rolemodels in the Westlandic media. Prominent LGBT Westlanders *Oska Stärk - current Chancellor of Westland (1983-) *Beau Blumas - Drag queen, media personality and international LGBT campaigner. (1987-) *Mikail Strasson - Political theorist, philosopher and founder of modern Westland (1857-1926) See Also *LGBT Rights in Westland Category:Westlandic People's Republic